WE test out two staycays that make for perfect minibreaks…
From hipster haunts to mini spas, gorgeous grub and glorious hikes, we reveal what these ideal staycations have to offer.
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Lansdowne House, Hove
Senior Writer Donna Smiley checked into Brighton’s hipster little sister for a dose of vitamin sea.
The Pad: Just minutes from the seafront, this beautiful Regency townhouse, owned by welcoming couple Natalie and Tom, makes the perfect base for a coastal getaway.
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Interiors are calm and relaxed, rooms are adorned with art and antiques, and the floor-to-ceiling picture windows are perfect for spying the sea at the end of the road.
Some rooms boast freestanding baths and all have luxe Noble Isle toiletries.
The scrumptious breakfast ingredients are sourced locally and you can tuck into your scrambled eggs and smoked salmon in the garden room overlooking the original walled garden.
Explore: Snap Hove’s colourful beach huts before walking to the West Pier ruins – one of the most photographed buildings in Brighton and Hove – and perusing the eclectic wares of the independent traders in the West Pier Arches.
Here you can nab fab art and homeware.
Afterwards, stroll 20 minutes down the seafront to Brighton i360, the spinning 450ft viewing pod for pretty vistas across the city, the South Downs and beyond.
Tickets cost £17.95 per adult (Brightoni360.co.uk).
Wander along The Lanes and North Laine for shopping gems like Resident Music, where you can pick up secondhand LPs and catch bands gigging in-store (Resident-music.com).
Then hit tea connoisseurs Bird & Blend’s flagship shop with over 100 blends – my favourites were spiced pumpkin chocolate and buttermint, from £3.50 a box (Birdandblendtea.com).
Refuel: Head to locals’ favourite The Flour Pot Bakery for great coffee and the best bakes.
The cinnamon and orange bun, £3, is divine (Theflourpot.co.uk).
Meanwhile, generous roast lunches in central Brighton itself can be found at cosy pub The Basketmakers Arms, from £16.95 (Basket-makers-brighton.co.uk).
Craving seafood? Be sure to book the city’s oldest sea-front restaurant, English’s of Brighton.
Try the oysters kilpatrick with bacon, worcestershire sauce, butter, parsley and tabasco, £13 for three, and the fish of the day, with crispy thousand-layer potato, charred heritage tomato, lemon gel and wild garlic pesto, market price dependent.
A glass of Rathfinny classic cuvée, £12, pairs nicely.
Afterwards, try the melt-in-your mouth goat milk panna cotta with fig, vanilla coulis and black pepper, £9 (Englishs.co.uk).
Don’t Miss: Immersive cocktail bar Alcotraz. Don an orange jumpsuit, be led to your cell, then smuggle your liquor past the prison warden ready to make bespoke surprise cocktails – a mix of your smuggled spirit and the mixologist’s concoctions – alongside your fellow escapees, from £33.99 (Alcotraz.co.uk).
Book it: Double rooms cost from £135 a night, including breakfast (Lansdownehousehove.co.uk).
Piglets boutique, Essex
Sub-editor Zoë Huxford and boyfriend Piers found a mini spa, gorgeous grub and glorious hikes.
The Pad: In the heart of the Essex countryside, in the quaint village of Wimbish, you’ll find Piglets, voted England’s Best B&B 2023.
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Alongside the five cosy rooms in this adults-only haven, there’s an eco swimming pond, infrared sauna, games room and a boules lawn.
Affable couple Max and Chrissie run the show, with dishes such as eggs florentine and loaded waffles for breakfast, and dinner can also be whipped up for you.
We tucked into a fish and cheese deli platter, £25, before sipping Chrissie’s outrageously good home-made limoncello.
Oh, and there are over 50 gins to sample, too…
Explore: Wimbish boasts more miles of public footpaths than any other parish in Essex, so there are plenty of walks to choose from, whether you want a 30-minute morning wander or a more adventurous two-hour hike.
The historic town of Saffron Walden is 10 minutes’ drive away, with market days on Tuesdays and Saturdays.
Pick up zingy goat’s kefir, £3, from the stalls as you amble, then pop into The Fry Art Gallery, a tiny room where every inch is packed with local art (Fryartgallery.org).
Don’t miss: Reed & Son, too – it’s a chic antiques emporium with excellent prices (Reedandson.co.uk).
Refuel: Baking since 1919, Essex fave Dorringtons has mastered the jam doughnut, £1.50 (Dorringtons.com).
After something more substantial? Head to Turkish restaurant Maze in Saffron Walden for impeccable service and mixed meze, £9.95, followed by imam bayildi, AKA stuffed aubergine, £14.95 (Mazebarandgrill.co.uk).
Or try Chater’s – a hidden gem.
Feast on fluffy focaccia with burnt butter, £4.50, scallop crudo, £8, and cacio e pepe pasta, £10, plus what can only be described as a life-affirming tiramisu, £9 (Chaters.uk).
Don’t Miss: Meet the resident horses, take a river walk and explore the kitchen garden at Audley End House and Gardens, £20.90 entry (English-heritage.org.uk).
Book it: Double rooms cost from £200, including breakfast (Piglets.co.uk).
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